Time to Choose
by emjermey
Summary: Everything seems well; Ianto has just returned from time away and Jack is making the most of his good spirits. However, some mysterious visitors will push the couple's realationship to the limits - how much can they endure. Jack is faced with a choice - Ianto's life or the lives of many? But which will he choose? My first fic so please let me know what you think.Xx
1. Homecoming

Jack skilfully adjusted the sights on his rifle, squinting through them, focused on his target.

He pulled his finger back gently on the trigger and there was a deafening boom as the gun fired – the sound ricocheting off the stone walls. Even through Jack's ear pads the sound was remarkable, and wonderfully satisfying. He studied the target; one clean hole – right through the centre (after three centuries of practice it really was too easy). As this thought jumped into his mind, another accompanied it; he would have to find a new pastime – before he got bored. This would remain a good way to release anger but becoming bored of a pastime; he could never let that happen.

Jack carefully placed the weapon on the table a few feet behind him and pulled off his ear pads. His ever-flattering protective goggles pinched at his face and as he peeled them from his face he could feel the rawness of the skin underneath – he had been down here for longer than he had realised.

Jack liked the hub at night – especially the firing chambers. He could test out new weapons and gadgets without a worried Gwen or Ianto peering in, wondering whether one day soon he would blow them all to kingdom come.

At present the chamber was almost silent and as a result the booms from all manner of weaponry sounded especially eerie; exciting, just as Jack loved it.

Despite all that Jack still preferred the hub during the day, it felt alive and cheery; the calm of night was often lonely. This night was going especially slowly. Each hour, each minute even seemed to drag by painfully and so very dull.

After the chamber had been returned to its original state Jack headed for the main part of the hub, not forgetting to look in on Janet in the way. Their resident Weevil looked right at home in her new, upgraded cell, sound asleep. He almost envied the simplicity of her life. It's simplicity, but in actual fact, most of all its briefness.

Jack sighed, the loneliness beginning to creep in. He checked the computer systems and as usual they were running their nightly scans, next, CCTV; all clear and running. Desperate to fight the boredom he played around with a new face recognition software he was testing, before finally accepting that he was not going to win the battle.

He groaned; there was nothing he hated more than boredom – it ate away at him like a vicious leech; sucking out all his passion for life with every moment of exposure that allowed it to consume a little more of him.

Jack looked around the hub; Ianto's desk nearest to him was immaculate as usual. Gwen's, a little further off, was less so. It looked as if she had made a conscious effort to be more like her colleague, having pushed papers into rough piles along the edge of her desk in an effort to make it look more presentable, her endeavours had been unsuccessful. She was funny like that, he observed, desperate to feel she had his approval yet also the first to back out on him if she believed he was not. Not like Ianto – loyal, gentle Ianto.

Jack felt a longing when looking at Ianto's desk; its owner had been in the North the past few weeks, clearing up a mess that had been made by a long range rift flare. With just the three of them resources were stretched at the moment so Ianto had had to go alone; much against Jack's wishes. He felt a pang of sadness as Tosh and Owen's faces swam before his eyes; he pushed them away with all his might; dwelling on such things was a sure path to madness. He cursed the fact he had allowed Ianto to take this one. At least if he'd gone he'd have been distracted; at least he wouldn't have been bored.

Jack frowned; this was new to him. He'd had serious relationships before – he'd been married for goodness sake but this was different. Outside marriage monogamy hadn't really been his string point; however what had started as just a bit of fun and stress relief had become so much more. For so long Jack had fought the urge to love Ianto; but to deny it would be to deny him-self, although Ianto would never know that. Why was it so hard? It was so difficult to convey his true feelings to Ianto. Never in his long list of relationships (and it was long) had he ever felt so fiercely; yet been so utterly useless at showing it. He shook his head to abandon this thought process – this wasn't him.

Ianto was due back late morning and Jack wished the hours by. He had missed Ianto, Gwen was great, but it just wasn't quite the same. He knew he'd been a complete arse the last few days and that had only led her to keeping her distance (which was understandable he supposed). Whenever she had been around him it was as if she had been treading on eggshells; it was so irritating he'd sent her home early that day – he couldn't deal with it. Her nervous looks she cast him after every time she spoke; trying to pre-empt his reaction to her words. She steered right clear of any slight mention of Ianto – to the point where she would stop mid-sentence and utter a small gasp as if she had muttered an unforgivable word. This annoyed him most of all _I'm not an emotional wreck_ he thought.

All this had put him in a very bad mood – hence the trip to the firing chamber. It hadn't eradicated his boredom or his loneliness but it had diffused most of his anger. He didn't want to be pissy with Ianto when he got back tomorrow - that's the last thing he wanted. H

Jack's eyes once again wondered over the empty hub. He smirked upon seeing the picture of the two of them which took pride of place on Ianto's desk – New Years Eve; it had been a memorable night.

Jack sighed, ciphering absentmindedly through the paperwork on his own desk – _Oh please let it soon be morning _he thought.

Ianto drew in a deep breath of midnight air, filling his lungs with the fresh sea breeze – it was good to be home. His fingers quickly tapped the familiar pass code to the back door and the lock clicked open to welcome him inside. He slipped through the doorway and shut the door quietly behind him. No alarm for this door, he sighed with relief. He had been worried that in his absence jack would finally have taken heed to his warnings and installed one for this door similar to that on the main entrance – the irony of this relief was not lost on him. Ianto crept into the makeshift cloakroom. Jack's ears were particularly sensitive and the hub was particularly quiet tonight; he did not want to prematurely alert him to his presence. Thus far all had gone perfectly as planned; he grinned to himself as he tried to picture the surprise on Jack's face.

Ianto removed his coat and carefully hung it up next to Jack's – he had missed that.

Ianto smiled to himself; his boss would be surprised to see him – he was not expected back until morning but Ianto had driven through the night to be back before dawn and savour the extra hours. Capturing time alone with Jack had become particularly hard since Tosh and Owen's deaths. With five of them, when things were quiet it had been easier to slip off without notice and at no cost to the world. Now however with only three they were never quiet – they were never alone.

Ianto tried to think back to when they had last been together- together, properly – it had been so long he was beginning to forget _that_ feeling; it would make tonight all the sweeter he told himself.

He crept silently into the main hub, his own heart jumping as he caught sight of Jack, sat at his desk, still unaware of Ianto's presence. Even after all this time Jack still made Ianto's heart beat a little faster, and his skin tingle. He admired _his_ man; his dark hair against those alluring blue eyes which spoke of so much in a single glance and yet gave away so little. His familiar blue shirt and braces concealing the angelic, muscular body which had teased so many - But not Ianto, it had welcomed him.

Ianto moved closer, ducking behind a computer station just in time.

Jack looked up. The hub before him appeared empty. Strange – he thought he'd heard footsteps. Jack shook his head and muttered to himself; "Your mind playing tricks on you Harkness" He looked back at his notes, "Get a grip man." Jack shuffled the papers to no particular purpose; he couldn't really claim to be reading them; his mind was elsewhere, dwelling too much on the absence of those he loved, and now it was playing tricks on him – great!

"Miss me?"

Jacks head snapped up. Standing in front of him, no more than 10 feet away was Ianto Jones. Now Jack knew he wasn't imagining things – his imagination wasn't that good. He sat staring for a moment, looking adoringly at the face he'd been fantasising about so much recently that he'd been afraid he'd be disappointed with the real thing. He wasn't!

"Well?" Ianto grinned; this was exactly the reaction he had hoped for. He couldn't remember a time that Jack had looked at him with such, well...love before; it was elating.

Jack's face had lit up beyond recognition of his expression moments earlier – he was a different man. He jumped out of his seat and bounded over to Ianto, pulling him into a strong embrace. He then pulled away slightly and Ianto's warm lips met his – he really had been away too long.

When they finally broke apart Ianto looked jack fondly in the eyes, a glistening in his own blue irises; "I'll take that as a yes then."

Ianto's lips curled up into a smile. Their bodies fitted so perfectly together, moved with such natural, blissful union it was as if they had been crafted for that single purpose alone. Fate you could call it; as if they were meant to be. Silly he knew, completely irrational, but he couldn't help thinking it all the same – it felt so true.

The whole world seemed to disappear when they were together like this; it was as if they had been pulled into heaven itself; Jack was certainly Ianto's perfect angel. There was no sound save for their breathing and their bodies moving gently across each other – pure bliss. It was only during such intimate moments as this that Ianto felt that Jack was completely his. Even when they sat talking for hours on end Ianto sometimes felt Jack's mind was somewhere else as well as with him, occupied with some case or long forgotten memory. But here Jacks mind was focused fully on the caressing movements of Ianto's body, he was completely Ianto's. Jack's concentration was fully occupied with his speciality.

Every moment they spent like this Ianto fell deeper and deeper in love with Jack; he knew Jack had had so many before him – he never kidded himself he was any different apart for in these few precious moments. Jack made him feel like he was the only person in the world; and for a few fleeting, heavenly moments; Ianto believed it.


	2. What A Great Birthday!

Ianto buttoned up his shirt before proceeding to tie and then straighten his blue tie; blue to match Jack's eyes – at least that had been the thought process behind the choice. He had planned every detail of last night down to the very detail, and hadn't it been worth it! Jack had more than compensated for sending him away for so long. He savoured the smell of Jack that lingered slightly on his skin. _Welcome home_ he thought cheerily, and what a welcome. Beside him Jack smiled like a schoolboy as he pulled on his own shirt – maybe nights weren't going to be so lonely after all.

Gwen was surprised to see Ianto leaning on Jack's desk as she entered the hub, alarm blaring in her ears. They didn't even break sentence. Though looking at the smug, lovesick smiles which were spread across their handsome faces as they talked, heads close together, she realised she shouldn't have been surprised.

Ianto was leaning, one arm on the desk while Jack sat forward in his chair, eyes fixed on his lover. They muttered quietly, with cheeky grins on both their faces as if they were discussing some great exciting secret which she suspected was probably not suited to more... _tender_ ears.

Although Gwen wanted to dwindle little on delving her thoughts into the couple's private life, she couldn't help having that sneaky feeling that Ianto had arrived long before daybreak. As she watched the couple, unguarded, emotions flowing (having somehow not heard the alarm, probably both of them too engrossed in each other) she wondered if this was how she and Rhys looked in their most intimate moments – what a thought!

Gwen's sneaky feeling was confirmed by the dark rings around Ianto's eyes and Gwen found herself wondering how much sleep he had had last night, if any. She pushed these thoughts away, surprised at her intrusiveness.

Ianto welcomed her with a warm smile and much to her surprise with a quick hug too.

"Good to have you back." Gwen grinned. She hadn't taken to Ianto first off but in the past few months he had come out of himself a bit; and he'd been an absolute darling in helping them to sort out Owen and Tosh's stuff. Jack hadn't been able to bring himself to touch most of it and Gwen had struggled to hide her feelings. Although Ianto had felt just as deeply as they both had he had headed the sort through without complaint; he was good at that – just getting on with things. When they had first met Gwen had put this down to a lack of feeling on his part – but after Lisa and after he and Jack had gone public she realised how much he had kept hidden. He was a suffer in silence type – and he had been there all through the aftermath of Tosh and Owen's deaths to offer her a shoulder to cry on.

Gwen squeezed him gently as they hugged, trying to convey how much (to her surprise) she had actually missed having the Welshman around.

Jack placed his hand subtly on Ianto's which had retaken its position on the desk. It was a small gesture but Gwen's eye caught the movement and took Jack's hint. "I'm sorry but I have some things I really need to get done." She winked at Ianto. "Catch up properly later yeah?"

Without waiting for a response from the surprised Ianto, Gwen grabbed a pile of papers from her desk and headed up to the briefing room. Ianto turned to Jack, "You didn't have to send her away you know."

Jack pulled him closer, "I know but you see I'm feeling rather selfish today," He ran his hand down Ianto's back, resting it on his belt, "You see I want you to myself for just a little longer." He grinned cheekily, Ianto raised his famous eyebrow – "Who said I wanted the same?"

Jack feigned hurt (not very well mind) "Well I suppose I..."

Ianto lifted a finger to Jack's lips to stop him going any further "Jack." He whispered, "Sometimes I believe you're 3 as opposed to 503" Before Jack could respond they were kissing again, jack simply smiled and let himself get lost in Ianto's warm touch.

Gwen set to work; she had no desire to disturb the lovebirds any further. She sighed, looked like today was going to be great fun. She couldn't complain though; she had missed Ianto a surprising amount and Jack had been in a foul mood since the moment he left; it had been almost instantaneous as soon as Ianto had walked out the door. She knew he's rather she had gone – he felt she could handle herself better on her own and it had been the first time Ianto had been out in the field completely unsupported. She would have gone but she couldn't have missed her wedding anniversary, Rhys would have hit the roof; the fact Jack hadn't argued when she had told him that suggested he also didn't fancy a dispute with the haulage director.

Gwen was relieved that Jack would now revert to his smiley self rather than the sulking, ill-tempered man that had replaced him in Ianto's presence. All the same she was feeling a little lonely. She was just contemplating whether to give Rhys a quick ring when the clock rang 12 o'clock and the glass doors of the briefing room slid open. Gwen looked up in surprise.

"I'm going for sandwiches" Ianto smiled, "Would you like anything?"

Gwen almost laughed at the feigned grin on Ianto's face – for once she could tell he was acting. Poor Ianto she thought; back five minutes and already Jack's sending him on the lunch run – she thought maybe for one day at least Jack would go himself, or accompany him. The image of Jack queuing up for sandwiches however, was a little ridiculous.

"I'm good for food thanks." She held up some slightly squashed sandwiches that Rhys had made her that morning as a birthday gesture. She felt it would be unkind not to eat them – he had even made the sausages they contained himself and he would be waiting to hear her opinion on them. It had been a kind gesture and had left her in such a good mood before she had arrived this morning. It wasn't that she'd expected anyone here to remember but she hadn't expected to be left alone all day. Perhaps she had been hoping that Jack in good spirits of Ianto's return would take them all out for lunch or at least for a drink – it looked however that staying in was more on his mind.

"But I could kill a coffee." She suddenly decided, looking imploringly at Ianto who nodded with a slight smile. "Milk, no sugar, "he confirmed.

Gwen grinned, "That's me! Thanks Ianto."

Ianto seemed to return almost instantaneously with a glorious smelling coffee that caressed her senses. She thanked him, before noticing he was wearing a slightly lopsided grin as he set it down. She at first put this down to Jack but then when he didn't immediately leave her curiosity was sparked. It was then that he bent down and placed a friendly kiss on her forehead placing something on the table as he did so. "Happy Birthday Gwen." He whispered, before darting out upon hearing Jack's loud complaints about being hungry and the fact that Ianto hadn't even left yet.

Gwen looked at the object he had placed on the table. On a small plate stood a large chocolate cupcake; her favourite flavour. She smiled at the intricate words written elegantly in icing on the top:

Happy Birthday Gwen.

Ianto

X

Of course; Mr organised would never forget her birthday. He must have made this before his journey back last night. Beside the cupcake was a small package, neatly wrapped in blue wrapping. She chuckled as she read the label which read; "Don't tell Jack!" intrigued she carefully opened the small package, gasping at the object inside. It was alien; there was no doubt. The beautiful stone shone beautifully. It resembled a small diamond, attached to a beautiful silver chain. The note that came with it explained some more. "Now you can eat all those cakes you always crave guiltlessly." She grinned, how well Ianto knew her. Tosh had told her about this – she had been working to adapt it for human use not long before she died; she must have finished it. She placed it around her neck where it felt surprisingly light before glancing at the cake, a glint in her eye. "Oh I am going to be the object of every woman's envy" she said to herself. It wouldn't make her lose weight (not that she wanted to) but it would stop her gaining it.

She smiled, taking a bite out of the fluffy cake, filling her mouth with the richest chocolate taste she had ever known, before taking a sip of coffee. Gwen sighed. She had missed Ianto's coffee.

Ianto grumbled. The wind was biting cold and the queue was significantly longer than usual. It wasn't helped by a short dumpy woman at its front who was kicking up an almighty fuss about something and nothing. Ianto couldn't stand people like that; always complaining and creating unnecessary dilemmas – what was there to gain from it; all you did was make yourself a nuisance to everyone else. She reminded him of his old boss at torchwood 1; nothing or no one had ever been good enough for him – he had been followed with deep resentment by all under him until the day he died. Cruelly, no one had missed him. He wasn't like Jack; no Jack would always be missed when he was away.

The people behind the woman were growing more and more impatient and their ill-mood had quashed Ianto's high spirits. Ianto glanced at his watch and groaned; three-quarters of an hour for two bloody sandwiches! Jack had better make this worth his while – this was not how he had anticipated spending his first day back.

"I can't stand people like that." The woman in front of him struck up a conversation, taking Ianto by surprise. Her accent sounded English but he couldn't quite place it and her general attire flashed "Student" at Ianto. How quickly he made snap judgements these days; he blamed torchwood for that. "Me neither," He muttered back, "They're so self-absorbed." His mind suddenly flicked back to an incident with Jack paying the bill in a restaurant once which turned out to be more expensive than anticipated and instantly regretted his statement. Oh well, Jack was Jack; _he_ could get away with it.

The woman nodded, smiling and lifting a hand to push one of her dark curls behind her elfish ear. She had a friendly face; welcoming to Ianto in the cold, harsh wind.

"Luna," She held out her hand, "Luna Brown." When Ianto hesitated to shake it she added; "Well I figure we're going to be here for quite a while so we might as well get a little acquainted." She beamed at him. What harm could it do?

"Ianto," he took her offered hand, "Ianto..." he hesitated; torchwood training kicking in, "...Harkness," he lied.

"Harkness?" She observed; "quite an unusual name."

"Yes, yes i suppose it is really," Ianto replied laughing; oh for Jack to see him now!

_Two hours of my life I will never get back _Ianto thought as he crossed the bay; _Welcome back to Cardiff! _

The girl had been sweet enough and had taken his mind off the biting cold and the lengthy wait but it was no compensation really.

"I was about to send out a search party." Jack stood up when he entered, his eyebrows raised, "What took you so long?"

Ianto merely sighed in reply. Good_ to know Jack would be super quick to react if anything had happened to me; _he thought sarcastically.

"Not off with some secret lover then?" Jack winked.

"I wish!" Ianto grumbled, chucking Jack his sandwiches.

"Aw come here," Jack held out his arms but Ianto shook his head. Got to make Gwen another coffee." He replied, she liked to have one every our or so; _it was her birthday after all. _He reluctantly left a slightly disappointed Jack to fulfil his "tea-boy" role.

"Don't forget mine!" Jack called after him. _How could I forget?_ Ianto thought.

Jack took a sip of the bronze liquid; just the right consistency, just the right balance of bitter and sweet. "Perfect" he praised the on-looking Ianto who smiled. He always found it slightly amusing how seriously jack took his coffee. Only He had perfected jack's favourite combination; a secret that would die with him. It was the way to winning jack's heart.

Gwen sat quietly at a computer monitor a little way away. She had got fed up of being all alone; especially when Ianto had failed to bring her second coffee she had grabbed that excuse to come back down into the main hub. She now found herself deeply regretting coming in this morning. They were ridiculously quiet; while a chance to catch up on some paper work it was not the kind of birthday she had imagined. Jack still remained ignorant of the fact that it was her birthday or at least seemed ignorant and still showed no sign of taking them out for a celebratory drink. Gwen assumed from that that he already had something planned for after she had left.

"Ooh hello," She exclaimed as the monitor flashed at her.

"Everything alright?" Jack looked over, coffee finished.

"Gwen pointed to the screen; "Looks like we have some visitors."

"Well then," Jack jumped up; "Let's go meet them."

Jack's easiness took Gwen by surprise. "Come on Ianto," He called, taking the young Welshman by the hand; "We have a tourist information centre to run."

"Gwen, back-up" he shouted over his shoulder as they left, "watch the monitor."

Gwen's eyes narrowed as the disappeared out of the entrance, shaking her head; "You bastards." She said after them; but they were already long gone.

"Can I help you...?" Ianto begun, emerging through the beaded doorway into the reception of the tourist office. "Hi."

Ianto was surprised to see Luna, the woman from the sandwich queue standing on the other side of the counter. "Seems like fate is determined to throw us together again," She flashed her beautiful white teeth at Ianto.

Jack appeared behind Ianto, curious of the familiarity between the two people in the reception. "What can we do to help you?" He asked innocently, placing a hand on Ianto's shoulder almost as a warning.

Gwen watching on CCTV upstairs smirked; "Looking jealous Jack," She muttered to herself.

Luna's eyes darted between an awkward looking Ianto and a defiant Jack. It was clear to see who wore the trousers in this relationship; or so she thought.

"I'm sorry," she addressed this second man, "but, as I was just about to say to Mr Harkness here, I must be mistaken as I was looking for a Gwen Cooper. There must be some mistake for someone said I might find her here." Jack straightened up; there were several parts of that woman's last statement that stood out to him. He had given Ianto a slightly rightwards glance at mention of his name but her next words had distracted him from following it up. Gwen? How did she know her and _how _did she know where to find her.

Upstairs, Gwen had sat bolt upright at the mention of her name, she peered closer at the screen; had she missed something? The woman on the monitor turned to go; Jack and Ianto were casting each other a confused glance.

"Wait."

The woman stopped.

"Gwen Cooper," Jack confirmed; still trying to process it himself.

The woman nodded. "A friend mentioned she worked at the bay. I asked after her company and they all pointed in this direction. I'm sorry for wasting your time." She tried to read the look on Ianto's handsome face but she could interpret nothing.

"What exactly do you want with her?" Jack was curious now.

"Why?" She faced him, cocking her head to one side as she asked, "Do you know where I could find her?"

Jack merely shrugged in reply – he didn't trust this woman and he was certainly going to find out what she was up to. "Only if you tell me what you want with her."

"It's a private matter." The woman remained sweet tempered but there was a growing impatience in her voice.

Gwen had had enough; her curiosity was getting the better of her. She leant forward and turned on her com.; "Jack I'm coming down and don't you dare try to stop me."

Jack nodded at Ianto; Gwen did not sound safe to argue with right now.

"She will be here in a moment," Ianto obediently put on a friendly smile, facing the woman before them; "Coffee?"

The woman accepted this offer, a little surprised by the sudden turn of events but knowing better than to express it.

"Hang on a moment," Jack held out a hand to bring the Welshman to a halt, "We don't even know your name."

"Oh how rude of me," Luna tried to act casually; Jack seeing right through her nervous act; "I'm Luna Brown."

Gwen emerged from behind the beaded doorway; Luna immediately jumping nimbly to her feet as she entered.

"Gwen Cooper," Gwen decided to take the friendly approach, shaking Luna's hand. "How can I help you?" Gwen heard Jack's slight tut and she knew he was a little put out; Torchwood was his after all. Gwen smiled – _payback for this morning_ she thought.

Luna's eyes darted to Jack and Gwen realised why Luna hadn't spoken immediately. "They stay," Gwen told her firmly; no matter how tempting it was to send Jack away she knew it would be pushing her boss a little too far and he would make sure she'd regret it.

"But it's about Torchwood" Luna lowered her voice.

Gwen nodded, "It had better be!" She had been initially curious but seeing the young girl now close up struggled to contain her irritation; _probably just another witness to their work who needs to be ret-conned_ she thought – what a great birthday! How cynical she had become!

Ianto returned proudly with the coffee, he handed it to Luna before stepping back to allow them some space.

"So, Luna," Gwen sat down next to their still uncertain visitor. Luna kept casting the men suspicious glances, staying silent until Gwen could stand the suspense no more, "This is Torchwood." Gwen gestured towards Ianto and Jack by way of explanation.

"Oh," Luna's eyes widened as it sunk in, a little disappointed. "I was expecting more...well, more."

Jack stepped forward so that his shadow fell across her in an intentionally intimidating manner. "Never mind that," he said with an irritation that made Ianto blush and Gwen snigger, "What do you want us for?"

"Well..." Luna still sounded reluctant but continued, "It's not me," She told them hesitantly, "I've got some...friends," she indicated towards the door. "They need your...well, your...expertise."

Jack looked livid; Ianto could guess what was going through the immortals mind. _Bloody amateurs...why just not bring your friends in with you, instead of wasting all our valuable time. Heck I could have had Ianto twice over by now if you hadn't played this little charade. _

The girl seemed to melt under his fierce gaze but when he spoke Jack remained surprisingly composed. "What do you mean by our expertise...?" He was unconvinced, if this was a prank...

Luna simply looked at Gwen, seeming to decide she was the most understanding, "You'd better speak to them; they're outside."

As Gwen moved to get up Jack stopped her, "Oh no you don't," He grabbed Luna by the arm; a little rougher than he intended but it had the desired effect none the less – she knew he meant business. "I'm not falling for something like that again," he muttered more to himself than anyone else; "now why don't you lead the way."

The young girl looked terrified but after a moment she managed to compose herself. Shaking herself free from Jack's loosened grip, she timidly led the way out into the Cardiff daylight.


	3. The strange Visitors

AUTHOR NOTE: Hi Guys, sorry it's been SO long but I've been all exammed out! This was initially an inconplete chapter but I decided to upload it a) because it's been so long and b) because the next chapter will sit ok on its own, so it's a LOT shorter than usual. Please let me know what you think and I will try to be quicker in getting chapters up in the future, thanks for reading, enjoy!

Standing a little way off stood two hooded figures. Their hooded cloaks which hung right down to their ankles and their clothes looked like they would look right at home about 150 years ago. _They better not be more of those star wars freaks _Gwen thought – that would be top her day. She knew that last lot had greatly amused Jack, but he hadn't been the one left with all the paper what a laugh that clean-up was; trying to fabricate reasons while a group of 20 star wars addicts had left home together for a "Jedi weekend" in Cardiff (whatever that was) and ended up two days later scattered to all four corners of the earth. No, he had sodded of with Ianto on some "case" and Gwen had been lumbered with it. _Well not this time _she thought.

The two figures turned as the small company approached; their faces barely visible; eaten up by the shadow of their hoods, save for the ridges of their noses. "Spooky," Gwen whispered to Ianto who suppressed a smirk.

"This is torchwood," Luna told them, she seemed to have gained more confidence in their presence and moved a little further from Jack's reach. The taller of the two held out a hand for Jack to shake; Gwen found her eyes drawn to it in surprise, see had half expected it to be skeletal or at least slightly alien. Instead it looked entirely human; the tanned skin, smooth and (as jack was about to discover) slightly rough from the wear and tear of everyday exposure to the elements.

As Jack accepted the man's gesture, the figure's sleeve shifted a little revealing a small bracelet. Gwen eyed it; it was simple; made of dark leather which held, crested into the material, a small silver symbol. It was Jack's reaction however that stilled Gwen's blood.

Jack had almost retracted his hand when he'd seen the bracelet. He looked startled; he looked scared. Jack - _scared_! Instantly uneasy it seemed jack no longer wanted to challenge the men before him. The symbol had changed everything and he knew these men would not reveal their purpose out here.

"You'd better come inside" he muttered, all previous anger diffused; "Where unwelcome eyes cannot venture."

Back in his own territory Jack seemed a little more himself. His shoulders relaxed a little and Gwen believed she even saw him wink at Ianto as they passed Owen's medical room. Whatever had gone on down there, Gwen didn't want to know.

As Luna stared in awe at her surroundings, the two men slowly lowered their hoods. The taller of the two looked middle age and sported a rather splendid beard (so Gwen thought), even from this distance Gwen could see the shadows in his eyes; he looked tired. His eyes spoke of one who had seen more than he had been designed too; it was the kind of look Gwen had sometimes noticed in Jack's blue irises.

The shorter of the two was younger; his mousy hair was cropped short and his chin was smooth as Ianto's. He had a handsome face, bright and interesting; yet it was so serious for one seemingly so young.

Ianto too watched the men with interest. Whereas most people stared in awe as Luna was upon their first entrance to the hub, their faces showed no emotion. The couple seemed utterly indifferent to their surroundings.

Although Jack seemed to have recovered a certain degree of confidence; his reaction to the bracelet; of which she had noticed the second man wearing an identical piece, still played over in Gwen's mind. There was no doubt it was significant but why? Gwen watched Jack with curiosity as he slowly regained his bubbly character, even if it seemed rather strained. Gwen frowned; she was also anxious to uncover another mystery – why did they come to her first?"


	4. Fish and Chips

Gwen sighed loudly. She noisily shuffled the papers on her desk for the umpteenth time and making a rash decision, she stood up abruptly. Ianto looked around from his own desk where he had been cleaning a photo of Jack and him; Luna had picked it up and got fingerprints all over it. It had been strange, he had felt suddenly protective over it, as if she was trying to pry into his life, find some great secret, some point of weakness.

Completely unfounded and paranoid he knew, but it hadn't just been the fingerprints that had annoyed him, he had felt a need to cleanse it of her very essence. He was, in part, drawn to her beauty and her meek nature, but there was also something that repelled him when there was any reference to his relationship with Jack. It felt as if somehow, in a farfetched way, she was trying to draw a wedge between them. The nagging feeling refused to go whenever jack was around when she was; when he, any pictures of him were gone it vanished. _I'm spending way too much time around aliens _Ianto thought to himself.

Gwen however looked fierce ready to pounce on someone, unaware of Ianto's internal conflict; he was almost scared to reach her gaze.

Gwen looked at his questioning face. _How could he sit there so calmly? _Jack had been in there for what seemed like centuries; even Ianto had been pushed out of the discussions. They had suggested Luna go home many hours ago, a suggestion at which the young girl had been noticeably relieved. The sun had long since set and Gwen had received several angry calls from Rhys. Ianto had suggested she went home, the rift was quiet and he was more than capable of taking care of any paperwork left. He would almost definitely be work more efficiently alone, without her there messing up his neatly organised piles of paper. Gwen however stubbornly refused to until she knew what was happening. Now, after a particularly heated call from Rhys she had come to the end of her tether.

Ianto had jumped when she'd slammed down the mobile onto the desk, she had then taken it out on the neat pile of sheets he had reluctantly handed her (his reservations now proved valid), and the welsh woman now stood purposefully with a look that would send even a fearless Cyberman running.

"This is ridiculous," Gwen snapped, "He can't just shut us out like this we're meant to be a team."

Ianto stood up too, but to stop her rather than support her. "Don't Gwen," he pleaded, moving cautiously towards her, "Jack knows what he's doing; he'll tell us what's going on when he's ready to."

"But will he Ianto?" Gwen pushed his arm aside. What hold did Jack have over Ianto that the young man should trust him so completely, even when he shut them out so?

"After all this time Ianto; if he can't trust us now he never will. I'm not going to let him keep us in the dark again, not after what happened last time."

Ianto made to protest but she silenced him, "At least one other person on the team must know what's going on; he promised no more secrets Ianto. So unless he has somehow telepathically let you know what's going, he's betrayed that promise."

Ianto had no response, he knew that pledge had annoyed Gwen at the time they had made it – after all Jack and he confided in each other daily, whereas she had to tell her darkest secrets to someone who would did not need to tell her theirs back, and didn't. Rhys wasn't part of the team and so didn't count; Ianto knew he could ever envisage having a heart to heart with Gwen, and so understood why she had been so strongly against it, she'd wanted an "everyone knows everything" stance but when Ianto had pointed out that could compromise things if say there was a traitor, and Jack had pointed out it would be impractical they had finally worn her down. Ianto could not pretend he wasn't relieved – he had no desires to share personal problems with Gwen, she was a good friend yes, but their working relationship didn't extend that far.

Gwen had no hesitations now though, the pact covered a situation like this and she was determined to make it work in her favour.

Before Ianto could stop her Gwen had stormed off in the direction of the briefing room, leaving him torn. His loyalty to Jack told him to stay put but he couldn't let her go in there on his own – she would resent that. Jack would be angry if he supported this "charade" in front of two apparently important guests, but then again how would it look if he just stayed where he was, having apparently made no attempt to stop it? – He would not be the favourite flavour of the Month for either of them.

After a deep breath he turned on his heels and reluctantly followed her – Jack would be annoyed either way but he could deal with that. Besides, though he'd never consciously admit it, deep down something within him felt Gwen had a point.

When Gwen reached the Office-like chamber she was surprised to find Jack alone. _Perfect _She thought, although she thought making a scene would have been a good way to express the extent of her anger, perhaps it would have not been the greatest tactics she had ever used. Bottling her anger up, she flung open the glass door with as much impact as she could.

Jack looked up. Gwen stood before him, hands on hips, unimpressed. If her glare had not been so intense, he might have found it comical. A moment later Ianto slipped into the room behind her, an apologetic look on his face, "sorry" he mouthed at Jack.

Before Jack could even open his mouth to speak, Gwen attacked. "What's going on jack?" She leant over the table, banging her fists against it in frustration, to warn him that she was not in the mood to be bullshitted; it had the desired effect on Jack who was completely aghast at this outburst.

"Who are those men? Where are they now? What do they want?" she clobbered him with questions, until his mind was thoroughly battered. When she paused to recover her breath he managed to recover enough to open his mouth to speak but it was then that she really dug into him, it was then that she really began her rant.

"You can't keep shutting us out like this Jack, (Jack raised his eyebrows at Ianto at Gwen's use of the plural), it's not fair on us... we're a team... how can we trust you if you don't trust us... don't give me any of your..."

Jack sat patiently, taking every insult Gwen flung at him as Ianto stood silent in the corner, his thoughts directed solely on getting as much distance between himself and the raging woman. Jack found it almost comical now he had overcome his initial shock. He could take confrontation with ease; it was whispering and underlying tension he struggled with. That's why he hated fighting with Ianto, the Welshman lacked the venom required in a row and Jack lacked the ability to stop before he went too far. Jack became cruel and coined phrases that cut deep and the long silences that followed, the days of glances across the room at Ianto who was clearly upset, were hell. Ianto rarely showed his true feelings even to Jack, and when Jack knew he was suppressing hurt, wondering if it was he himself who had caused that hurt or some other factor (Ianto was usually very forgiving), it was pure torture.

No, ranting and raving Jack could deal with. Jack sat back patiently until Gwen ran out of steam (she really had been bottling it all up for a while!) and allowed her to recompose herself before he offered any reply.

"It's a rather..." he paused, choosing his words carefully, judging the woman's temper, "...delicate matter."

Gwen glared at him.

Sit down, "Jack told her calmly, attempting to diffuse the tension a little.

Huffing like a teenager Gwen did as she was asked. _Good start, _Jack thought, _she's willing to co-operate if I do. _It was not unusual for Gwen to be completely unreasonable (well, Jack thought as such), she could be incredibly stubborn and could be impossible at times.

Ianto begrudgingly followed her example. After a brief pause, in which he quickly calculated the situation, he chose the seat beside her out of fear of being on the receiving end of any more of her rants – Jack he would work it out with later.

Jack leant forward, it was clear his team would not accept anything less than the whole truth. Being evasive would be dangerous by the look of Gwen's tightly clenched fists. He was a little surprised at Ianto; he usually stood steadfast by Jack's side (much to Gwen's annoyance), but it seemed this withdrawal from them was a bit too far for even dear Ianto. Jack wondered if there was something else eating away at his lover, some other seed of doubt hiding behind those big blue eyes. However, Gwen's fixed stare quickly dispelled this thought and brought Jack back to the present before he could sufficiently dwell on it to come up with a concluding opinion.

"The men you saw earlier." He began, "well they're more than your average alien nutters,"

"You don't say," Gwen's sarcasm heated the atmosphere in the room; her patience was wearing very thin.

"As I was saying," Jack cleared his throat, casting a meaningful look at Gwen, "they were from the Starza Hydro Central Service".

"Come again." Ianto leant forward now, his curiosity emboldening him as the raging woman beside him had begun to calm.

"The SHCS are like your universal Jedi, trained agents. They travel the universe as a sort of universal police, but with more powers; every time agents dream!" Jack now judged the atmosphere relaxed enough to regain his confident wit, though it was a little lost on the others.

"But what are they doing here?" Gwen too was now too intrigued to maintain her rage purely upon principle.

"Now that's the really beautiful part."

"Why is it that whenever you say that it sends shivers right down my spine?" Ianto looked worried.

"Because you can read me like a book." Jack churned out the old cliché with a wink before turning serious; as was so often the pattern of his conversation. "Your shivers are entirely justified. Now," Jack lowered his voice, "they will not reveal the true nature of their mission to us, but if they are here it means there's trouble; big trouble. These aren't your average Jedi."

"They never are," Ianto struggled to suppress a groan; the day had started so well.

"The markers they wear..."

"...On their wrists?"

"You noticed?" Jack sounded impressed, Gwen smiled and nodded; despite it all she always had a slightly warm, pleasant feeling when Jack smiled at her or was proud of her.

"Well," he continued, "these are the top of the top, the cream of the crop, the top nosh, the..."

"We get the picture."

"Jack cast Gwen a reproachful look for stopping him mid-flow, but carried on; "these are like your MI5 of the universe. They are highly specialised and exceptionally dangerous. Where ever the SHCS go there's big trouble, and more often than not, a lot of death."

Gwen and Ianto cast each other concerned looks, Jack rarely dwelled upon a death count if he could help it.

"But why come to us?"

"We're the only "alien aware", active defence force around, they need to find out what we know, if anything."

"And they're human," Ianto said more to himself than anyone else. He was surprised, and slightly proud that of all the species, human came out on top.

"Not exactly," Jack shook his head, "they're a similar species though. Call it an advanced race, superior with only the best bits of humanity chucked in."

"Sounds a little too supremacist to me," Gwen muttered.

"It's evolution." Jack replied, "It's a lot more full proof; designing a "superior race" is way too flawed, it's too susceptible to opinion."

"Of course," Gwen replied sarcastically. "So," she looked at Jack blankly, "What do we do?"

Jack's team looked at him expectantly; part of him had been irrationally hoping that between them they'd have come up with an ingenious scheme, "that's what I'm trying to decide," he sighed.

"Finding out why they're here would be a good start." Ianto pointed out, as logical as ever.

Jack nodded, "the only problem is how?" They fell into silence for a moment before Gwen suddenly blurted out in realisation; "Where did they go Jack?"

As if to answer her question, two figures appeared at the glass door, both holding greasy paper bags in their hands.

Jack stood up grinning, "It seems out friends are particularly partial to some good old British fish and chips," he laughed, "looks like they've found some." Both man held childish grins as the whiff of hot chips wafted through the briefing room.

Ianto could only think of the inevitable long parade around Cardiff to find an air freshener that Jack approved of. "That's going to stink out the hub," he moaned.

Jack adopted a business-like tone as he whispered a few last words to his team. "For now we work with them." He told them. "If we have any chance of finding out the true nature of their visit we need them on our side; if we value our lives we do."


	5. It's Personal

"So Mr Harkness..."

Ianto spun around to find Jack facing him, leaning casually against the door frame (no doubt in an attempt to look sexy), a cheeky glint in his eye. He winked at Ianto. Ianto felt a strange pleasure at being referred to by that name, but he wouldn't let Jack know that, not with that teasing glint in his eye.

"It was a slip of the tongue," Ianto rolled his eyes; "yours just happened to be the first name that pushed its way into my head. Don't flatter yourself."

"And why would that be?" Jack moved towards him, down here in the cool, dark hub storerooms, away from their ominous visitors and the watching eyes of CCTV Jack was entirely unguarded. It was refreshing to see him relaxed, he had been so tense and withdrawn the last two days and it was good to see a release of the strain that had been so evident in his very mannerisms. Perhaps it was simply because Ianto knew every inch of Jack so well but he noticed so much the subtle changes to it that came about when Jack was particularly worried; it seemed to age him a little, take its toll on his ancient limbs. Ianto wondered if Jack noticed similar changes in him as each year of his fragile life passed, leaving him that little bit closer to death. It was a reality that haunted Ianto, one they had both had to live with since the day they met.

"We need to talk." Jack wrapped his arms around Ianto, holding him close enough for Ianto to feel his breath on his face.

"We are talking." Ianto stated the obvious; he couldn't work out if this was some strange new seduction routine, his last words would signal to Jack that if it was it wasn't working. Ianto felt his heart flutter a little as Jack looked deep into his eyes. This was what Ianto loved. The heart to hearts, the talks that made him feel special. They discussed Jack mostly but Ianto didn't mind, he was a good listener and he loved hearing Jack's stories. However, right now Jack didn't seem to be offering any such thing. Ianto had missed the serious note in his voice, his hushed tone which Ianto had simply taken a way of making their conversation seem more intimate.

"The three of us," Jack replied. It was then Ianto realised. Only now did he notice Jack's frequent glances behind him. Suddenly he felt the Time Agent tense; before Ianto could speak he'd placed a hand over his lips. Ianto strained his ears and soon realised what Jack had heard. Footsteps... and now, someone turning the handle of the vault door...

"Kiss me," Jack told Ianto in a harsh whisper.

"Wha..."

Jack forced his lips onto Ianto's. It was a rushed, forced kiss that made Ianto want to pull away. \but the door hadn't quite stared to open yet. Jack was kissing him too intensely, Ianto put it down to stress but he wanted nothing more than to push him away. Jack had both his hands holding Ianto's face, allowing him no chance to adjust his position to make it a little more pleasurable. He'd pushed Ianto backwards slightly as he'd roughly forced the kiss upon him. Ianto could feel Jack's breathing begin to quicken in passion, but to Ianto's surprise it didn't seem feigned. Ianto on the other hand felt no such pleasure in this aggressive treatment and attempted to resist.

Within seconds the door was open and it was over. In feigned surprise they pulled apart to find a slightly awkward looking Luna. Despite her awkwardness, as her eyes darted from Jack to Ianto they widened in realisation (as if Jack hadn't given her enough hints already). Something seemed to light up in them as she realised, Ianto couldn't quite place it, and he narrowed his eyes slightly in suspicion.

Jack of course didn't notice such things. "Yes," he said roughly, so abruptly in fact Ianto saw her flinch.

"They asked me to fetch you," she said timidly.

"What am I a dog?" Jack pushed past her, "next time you tell them they can wait until it's convenient for me."

"Of...of course," But Jack was already out of earshot.

Ianto couldn't find it within him to also give her the cold shoulder and so instead offered her a drink which she declined hastily. He followed her back upstairs, locking the vaults as he did.

They walked in silence for a while, a slow pace with Ianto continuously having to stop to lock the doors and Luna not at all inclined to walk ahead alone. Ianto guessed it had taken her quite a while wondering around in the unknown to find them. Even so there was something about her that wasn't quite right.

"I was wondering," Luna broke the silence first.

"mmm...?" Ianto heaved closed a heavy door.

"I'm new around her, and I don't know Cardiff well. I was wondering, perhaps if your boss would allow it, I know your very busy and all but if you could perhaps take me around, show me some of the sites before I go."

"You're leaving?"

"Well we won't be here forever, and our bosses seem to be taking care of things, it might do us some good to get out into the open for a bit."

Ianto considered. There was something about Luna he didn't entirely trust, Gwen had told him he was being paranoid but Ianto couldn't shake off the feeling. He doubted Jack would like the plan much but she seemed harmless enough and perhaps she would open up in a more relaxed environment.

"Sure," he gave her his answer, with surprising ease. "When were you thinking?"

"Well I thought perhaps this evening."

"Why not," Ianto smiled. Jack had been complaining earlier about how much he would have to do this evening and was probably going to send Ianto home anyway so he wouldn't miss much. Besides, the sooner they found out why their guests were here the sooner they could have them gone and Jack would be his happy self again.

_Why is this so hard? _Gwen thought to herself. They've barged in here, practically moved into the hub, used all our resources and now they want to access our _personal_ files! By rights she should be throwing a fit by now, she should have thrown them out in fact. So why was she sitting here, going to the trouble of pretending to consider it? Of course she wouldn't give them access, though it was strangely tempting to, it would be against every protocol so she couldn't even if she'd wanted to. Why then did she feel so obliged to help them, so hard to resist their request which, quite frankly, had been rudely made? She couldn't even say no to them now.

She shook her head and mumbled something feeble about not having the right clearance to make such a decision and that they'd have to ask Jack. They must have seen straight through her but they made no objection, she even thought she saw them exchange a "pleased" glance but she had no time to dwell on that observation as Jack burst into the hub to be followed moments later by Luna and Ianto.

Jack stormed straight to his office without even gracing them with a side-wards glance. Gwen sat slightly aghast by this sudden outburst. Jack had been so contained and controlled over the last 48 hours but it seemed the tether had finally broken. The two hooded visitors made to follow him but were stopped momentarily by Luna. After a short, inaudible conversation they nodded, one of them slapping her on the back like sportsmen often do to their team mate who's just scored the winning point. They then followed Jack up to his office.

Gwen cast Luna a curious look. She had been hanging around few a few hours now; Gwen wasn't quite sure why she'd stayed. This was the first time she'd exchanged much more than a nod of the head with her two robed superiors and she seemed way out of her comfort zone as she lolled uselessly around the hub like a spare part.

Meanwhile however Gwen hadn't been much better. She'd spent most of the morning attempting to fix Ianto's coffee machine which she'd broken earlier that morning (I mean why did it need all those different buttons, surely one or two would suffice, there were more different blends of coffee than there were people in Cardiff from the looks of it!) It had been a present from Jack (_bloody cheek_ Gwen had thought; she'd have killed Rhys if such a present had even entered his mind – _how romantic!) _She had succeeded in fixing it but she had a feeling Ianto knew; he spent a few moments fiddling with it before the late morning coffee and had cast both her and Luna suspicious looks as if to figure out whom the culprit was – Gwen was guilty all over.

"So where does Luna fit in to all this?" Ianto stood by Jack in the corner, both of them sipping coffee and observing their visitors. Gwen and Luna seemed deep in a conversation which seemed to have them both giggling away, juxtaposed by the two hooded men who stood a little away from them, the epitome of seriousness.

"You like her don't you" Ianto thought he could sense a slight resentment in his Boss's voice.

"Don't be childish." He kept his answer short to show he was not in the mood for teasing – it had been a long day. After the little episode earlier in the vaults, Ianto was not in the best of moods with Jack.

Jack took hold of his free hand, "I thought you liked it when I..."

"Not now Jack," Ianto pulled away, conscious of the others in the room. Jack took the hint, while looking a little hurt, he quickly returned to the question.

"Ok, right, yeah. Well every secret agent needs their bond girl," he said jovially.

"You're kidding!"

"Sadly yes... by my guess she's something of a secretary, or perhaps an Earth ambassador or something along those lines; their link to _this _planet in _this _time. She does seem very young though."

"Everyone's young to you Jack," Ianto replied

The two women paused for a moment to observe the two men in the corner.

"Why is it all the good looking ones are gay?" Luna winked at Gwen who grinned, maybe she'd misjudged Luna. She was a bubbly sort of person with easy conversation; not so different from Gwen at all.

"Tell me about it! You're two aren't all that bad though."She turned as if to inspect them, "I'd go as far to say that the young man over there is _rather dashing!" _She said the last in a "Jane Austen" style manner which made Luna laugh.

"No," she giggled, "I guess they're not bad at all."

"Fancy a swap?" Gwen joked.

"Sorry," Luna shook her head before pausing as if having second thoughts, "actually I'll think about it!"

Gwen laughed. Luna seemed to have come out of her shell a little this evening. She seemed more at home and relaxed, and as it turned out, was quite good company. Gwen didn't know what conversation she'd had with the others earlier but it had certainly boosted her confidence. It was nice having another girl around, Jack and Ianto were great but she missed the girly chats she'd shared with Tosh on those rare occasions and with her friends pre-torchwood whom she no longer saw. Gwen was starting to feel maybe their visitors weren't so bad after all.

Their two hooded visitors it seemed really were particularly partial to fish and chips and left for another feast at around 6ish. Luna had strangely refused Jack's suggestion she go home, frowning he had called Gwen down to the vaults.

Ianto confirmed they were still on for the "Cardiff tour" later that evening before Gwen and Jack on the pretence of "feeding the Weevils" as instructed previously by Jack. This way they could "talk" away from prying ears.

Once deep in the vaults Ianto and Gwen turned to Jack expectantly, his expression was grave.

"What is it?" Ianto had seen that look only a few times before, the first time had been when he'd threatened to put a bullet in Ianto's brain if he didn't stand away from Lisa, understandably, Ianto's heart dropped.

"It may be nothing." Jack cast a look around as if checking for hidden ears.

"It doesn't seem like nothing," Gwen said firmly, Jack would not get away with pulling wool over their eyes this time.

"I gave them access to the system..." Jack began.

"But..."

"Wait." Jack cut Gwen off. " i put them on a "visitor user" it's something Tosh set up before she... anyway it ,means I could monitor what they were doing with our files, what they were viewing and so on without leaving a trace. Tosh's technology of course, faultless once finished has proved her genius once again. They're unused to our technology and so they shouldn't even suspect."

"and...?" Gwen looked at Jack; she had complete faith in Tosh's system and couldn't see the problem, so why had he asked to speak to them like this?

"Well I expected to find them snooping around in our defence systems, and old case files perhaps to see how much we know about their mission and how well we could defend ourselves. But they haven't touched them."

"Well what have they been looking at then?" Ianto frowned .

"They seem to have taken quite an interest in us, they've been snooping around our personnel files."

"what?"

"They were asking me about them this morning, I thought it was strange," Gwen spoke up.

"mmm... it's strange. They've looked at mine on and off; surprisingly they don't seem too startled by it, it's you two they seem more interested in."

"Us?"

"They started with yours Gwen, going over every minute detail until this afternoon when they suddenly abandoned it, halfway through. It's you they seem interested in now Ianto."

"Me?"

Jack nodded, "so it would seem."

"But what's so interesting about me?"

Jack shrugged, "You underestimate your own importance Ianto; you're a key, longstanding member of the team."

"No more than Gwen is."

"Maybe one of them fancies you." Jack grinned, "I don't blame them."

Ianto offered a strained smile in reply, his mind flashed to his plans with Luna tonight.

"I don't want you here tonight, either of you," Jack told them, "I need to think. Go home and rest, I need you at your best in the morning, I think it's time we started standing up for ourselves."


	6. Betrayal

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Ok guys, sorry it's been a while but I've been away in India for a month and so have had no time to write and no access to a computer. This is pretty rough but I thought I'd get it up ASAP as I haven't updated in ages. Sorry it was a bit rushed I'll try and take more care with the next chapter I just felt really guilty I had left this story fo so long. Please forgive me and let me know what you think.

Ianto shivered slightly in the cold sea air. The wind was blowing a little too fiercely to be comfortable and after a good hour of waiting, frozen, Ianto's angelic patience was beginning to wear off. _Five more minutes _he thought to himself _five more and I'm out of here. _

As if she could read his mind the small figure of Luna appeared, fighting against the wind towards him. Ianto met her half way.

"I was beginning to think you'd stood me up." He muttered, making a point of wrapping his coat around him tightly.

She muttered an apology, saying something about something take longer than anticipated. By this point Ianto no longer cared.

"Shall we get going?" he asked her, impatient to be out of the freezing gales. "anywhere in particular you want to see first?"

Jack slumped back in his chair. Early 21st century technology, he hated it – the human race had tried so hard to create new gadgets and gizmos they had over complicated everything. Simplicity was the key and simple it was not. It did the job of course it just took twice as long. That's what had attracted him to tosh's skills. She kept things simple, elegant – she was way ahead of her time.

Jack had been trawling through the system for hours now and was getting nowhere. He wasn't even quite sure what exactly he was looking for which made it even worse. Just something out of place or altered. It was strange – all their visitors had done all day was study Ianto's file. Of course Jack had blocked any of the important things such as details of Lisa and his family and certain details about his recruitment and cases. Yet they had kept interested, what were they after?

Jack jumped as the door to the hub opened. He spun around at the noise to face Gwen.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her.

"Forgot my phone," she grumbled.

"Here," Jack tossed her the phone he had found in a storeroom earlier.

Gwen caught it, before tossing it back. "That's Ianto's phone, not mine." She told him (surely he should know that by now).

"Really?" Jack examined the phone, she was right. But Ianto never went anywhere without his phone, and he certainly wasn't one to lose things, "odd". Jack frowned and then shrugged; Ianto had been in a strange mood earlier; maybe he was distracted.

Jack guessed maybe Ianto had been embarrassed at being discovered by Luna; he did suspect Ianto had a soft spot for her. Ianto had been hesitant earlier in the vaults, he had been resistant to Jack's kiss, and it had been a little hurtful to Jack who couldn't understand why. Maybe Ianto was growing tired of Jack's lack of commitment.

Jack hadn't thought he'd treated Ianto badly but now he thought about it maybe he didn't treat him as well as he could, as well as Ianto deserved. Jack's stomach twisted at the thought – what was this? Could it be he was jealous of Ianto's attention to Luna? If Ianto found someone else wouldn't that be a good thing? Jack should stand back and let him. A selfish spark in Jack angered at this thought; no!

Luna stopped suddenly, looking around unsure.

"What is it?" Ianto asked her, he had a feeling her attention was wavering. In fact her earlier enthusiasm for such a tour seemed to have completely evaporated, she looked on edge.

"Would you rather we did this some other time," Ianto suggested.

"No!" she retorted a little fiercely, taking Ianto aback.

Upon seeing Ianto's cautious face Luna suddenly changed tact. She smiled easily, "could we just sit over there for a minute or two, give our legs a break?" She indicated towards a bench, overlooking the sea.

"Sure," Ianto nodded, it was a little more sheltered there, up against the back of a building so he was more than happy to comply, even if it be a little dark, away from the streetlights.

"Can I ask you something?" she turned to him.

"Ask away," Ianto welcomed this new, lighter mood.

"Earlier, you and Jack, is everything ok between you?"

"Wha... I..." Ianto was taken aback at such an intimate question coming from an almost perfect stranger.

"I know it's none of my business," she interrupted his mumbling, "but I couldn't help noticing, when I... disturbed you earlier, it seemed a little forced on your part, I mean correct me if I'm wrong but he seemed, well... a little more..._enthusiastic _than you did. In fact you looked as if you wanted nothing more than to be out of his sight." Luna looked empathetic. "I just mean, if you need to talk to someone about it, someone impartial, you can."

Ianto just sat in silence, completely flabbergasted. "I..." he shook his head, "It was nothing, I'm fine, Jack and I we're fine."

"I'm sorry, I should never have stuck my nose in, you just seemed like you needed a talk."

"I...err...thanks." Ianto looked at her embarrassed face; it wouldn't hurt to talk would it, just talk?

Ianto took a deep breath. "It's just sometimes, it's hard you know. With Jack the way he is and, well, it just seems like sometimes he doesn't think."

Luna studied him with genuine interest. "It must be hard," she spoke softly; "you must love him a lot."

"Of course, Just sometimes it... well it feels a little one sided. I know he can't make a commitment and I get that, I just wonder sometimes if he's just staying to keep me happy, and for well... other stuff." Ianto straightened up after a moment's pause, "I've never spoken to anyone about that before."

Luna shrugged, "sometimes it's good to get it off your chest." She put her arm around him, "he must love you though, right; in one way or another?"

"Oh he loves me," Ianto replied, "But he loves Gwen too." Ianto couldn't help himself, he was startled at what he was saying but he couldn't help but spill out all his deep seated worries and fears, ones he thought he'd buried some time ago. It was just so easy to talk about it; as if all is reserve had been removed; strangely he felt completely relaxed about it.

"Would he die for you, if he could?"

Ianto paused at this strange question, looking Luna straight in the eye. "I believe he would, just as I would die for him." Ianto shuddered at the thought; the one positive to Jack's condition was that Ianto knew he would never have to grieve for Jack.

Luna leant back satisfied, "well that's something then isn't it. It's a kind of commitment."

Ianto couldn't help but smile back at her, "yes... yes I suppose it is."

Luna leant forwards until Ianto could feel her breath on his face. "still it must be hard for you, to forego any idea of a family, of a normal life, a nice home... a girlfriend. I mean you're not going to be at torchwood all your life, one day you might want to settle down. In fact, I don't believe that day is very far off."

"I don't really have much choice," Ianto pulled away a little, but not as much as he should have. Something stopped him. His head was telling him to move away but it was as if an invisible will was urging him to stay, and he couldn't fight it.

"Oh but you do Ianto Jones, you really do..." Luna leant forwards further until their lips met; this time Ianto didn't pull back. In fact he did quite the opposite, gently caressing her lips in his. As soon as their lips met it was as if lightning had struck, he felt electrified - elated. It was as if every nerve in his body had been turned on with an intensity that he'd never experienced before, and it was wonderful.

Could this have been what he'd been missing all these years? Was this what you felt when you found _the one? _Something deep inside was telling him these thoughts were completely irrational, urging him to pull away and run. But the dominant will in him was too strong now and such thoughts were barely a whisper next to the roaring flames of desire.

Ianto pulled Luna closer, rubbing his hand along her thigh. She complied, pushing her leg up around him until she was half sat on top of him, her breath quickened in time with his as she reached for his belt.

She grinned, the lipstick had worked as they had said it would; he was at her mercy. She could stop now, she had planned to. There was something about this man though, something that filled her with such desire that she couldn't help herself. She would take advantage of the situation now while he was compliant, she may not get another chance.

Ianto groaned at the pressure of her hands around his privates as she fumbled at his belt. He gasped as she grabbed the crotch of his trousers, massaging it as she realised the affect it was having on him, her other hand still fumbling with his belt.

She grinned as she finally succeeded, grabbing his head and planting a kiss on his lips to ensure the lipstick did not wear off too soon, she felt him melt in her caress and beamed down at his handsome face. She slipped down his zip and reached inside, Ianto crying out as she did so. Telling him to quieten she undid her own zip before fumbling for the top of his boxers. But as her hands met Ianto's warm skin he suddenly stiffened.

It was as if a cloud had been lifted from Ianto's head and he could think again. The sight of Luna on top of him was quite something to register. He immediately tensed, pushing her aside. He felt giddy still though and struggled to stand up, with difficulty however he managed it; hurriedly doing up his trousers. Luna looked startled, and a little disappointed.

"what did you do to me?" He stumbled, "I trusted you."

Ianto heard a male voice, "He's strong" it said, "you took him too far Luna." It sounded firm, but then softened as Luna cowered, "but you've done well so it is forgiven."

Ianto's legs collapsed and he fell onto his knees. His world was beginning to darken, but just before he blacked out he was able to make out the silhouettes of two robed figures; "you".

Jack watched Gwen, irritated as she fumbled around noisily searching.

"You definitely left it here."

"Yes, well I think so."

"You_ think_ so," Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Well where else could I have... damn it!" Gwen grabbed her bag.

"What?" Jack called after her.

"The pub."

Jack sighed as he watched the Welshwoman rush out of the exit, it was hard to believe she'd been a policewoman once, she was so scatty.

"Jack Harkness," Suddenly the monitor flashed on to show their two visitors.

"Good evening," Jack spoke to the screen in surprise, "what can I do for you."

"Well now," the elder replied, "that is the Question."


	7. The Rift

AUTHOR'S NOTE: SORRY IT'S BEEN SO LONG - STUDYING FOR A-LEVELS HAS LEFT ME LITTLE TIME TO SPARE. PROCRASTINATING FROM REVISION I FOUND THIS AGAIN. SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS BOTH A LITTLE SHORT AND VERY ROUGH BUT I FELT IT BETTER TO GET IT UP AS IT HAS BEEN SO LONG. SORRY TO EVERYONE WHO HAS BEEN WAITING FOR THIS SORRY YOU'VE HAD A LONG WAIT PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP ON ME! MY EXAMS FINISH AT THE END OF JUNE SO I SHOULD HOPEFULLY BE WRITING A LOT MORE THEN - I MIGHT EVEN FINISH THIS ONE! I WILL TRY AND GET A BIT MORE DONE BEFORE THEM BUT I HOPE YOU ALL UNDERSTAND I'M SURE A FEW OF YOU ARE GOING THROUGH THE SAME PERIOD. THANKS AND HOPE YOU ENJOY.

Jack stared at the screen before him. Not quite sure how to react to what he had just heard. Every part of him wanted to take the monitor and throw it across the room, but that would have been counter-productive.

How dare they?! He had invited them into the hub; given them access to files, made them welcome - and now this. What they were asking him to do was impossible; the rift was to unpredictable. On the screen the two hooded figures stared back at him; their gazes seemed to leap out of the monitor, cold and intrusive.

"Surely you must see the danger here Captain," the elder of the two spoke again. "This scar in the universe has become a great problem for inter-galactic travelers and even casual passers by who run the risk of being scattered across the universe. We must do this, and you're the only one who can."

Jack tried to calm himself, forcing himself to sit down, he needed to be logical, rational to be sure he wasn't letting his emotions affect his decisions. No, he decided, he wasn't being unreasonable. "We have managed the rift well enough, rehabilitating the survivors and protecting Earth from those who would wish to attack it. If the rift poses such danger then why now? You've had thousands of years to put it right; why here, why now?"

"Because you're here of course."

Jack huffed in disbelief; this was ridiculous. The rift was not something that could simply be closed; he had worked alongside it long enough to know that. Any attempt to close it posed serious danger to the whole of earth if not the whole solar system.

"You must see the seriousness of this captain," the younger spoke; "we have lost a whole species due to this "rift" and risk the loss of more if it is not controlled."

"And what about the Human race - are they of less value?" Jack could not believe their arrogance; their sense of power to choose which species had the right to survive. You cannot control the rift," Jack spat at the screen.

"But we can try to close it. If successful the damage should be fairly localized"

"IF" Jack raised his voice, not quite believing he was sitting discussing this, " Best case scenario we destroy most of Wales, worst case we wipe out the Human race. No," Jack shook his head; "There is no way I will risk that!

"We thought you'd say that." The elder nodded to the younger of the two men who proceeded to fiddle with something, evidently on their own computer monitor.

"Then it seems you've wasted your time." Jack could not understand it, the arrogance. But something in his stomach began to twist _they knew I'd say no? _He was familiar enough with their kind to realize that they would not have come without a full proof plan.

"Well we'll just have to see about that; I think that you'll soon... reconsider your priorities."

As the younger of the two fiddled with their own computer the image on the screen suddenly changed. Jack struggled to make out the image at first but as the image was lit up his eyes widened in horror. "No!"

Ianto fumbled around in the darkness, searching for his phone in his pockets. It wasn't there! But it had to be! He searched again, struggling against the bonds that held his hands together - nothing. He thought back, racking his memory; his head throbbing as it had been from the moment he'd come round. He'd definitely had his phone in the vaults, he'd used the app Tosh had installed on it to check Janet's hormone levels. He'd had it when Jack had pushed him against the wall, it had been knocked out of his hands and he'd had to pick it up after, just before he locked the door and took Luna back to... Luna. He cursed his carelessness, she must have taken it from him then. He'd been so caught up in his own thoughts after hearing how they had been scrutinizing his personal files he'd forgotten to do his usual checks before leaving the hub that evening.

How long would it be before Jack realized he was missing? He had little concept of time in this darkness, no idea how long he had been unconscious. His memory was blurred, details of the evening were hazy but as he thought of Luna he remembered some moments with painful clarity. Her arm around him, her lips on his; a burning desire for her body to become entwined in his, her touch on his skin... after that moment his memory was blank. He was consumed with guilt as he realized he had no knowledge of how far he'd gone. He felt sick; how could he have betrayed Jack so? He wanted to wash; to scrub himself clean of every trace of her touch, he felt dirty inside and out; how had such feelings ever entered his mind? Yes he had been angry with Jack for forcing himself upon him. He realized why he'd done it but it hadn't been necessary. He had been more disturbed by how Jack had seemed to enjoy it; he seemed to have been turned on by forcing himself upon him. But that did not excuse what Ianto had done. He knew now that things would never quite be the same between him and Jack now, there would be a rift between them. How could he smile back at Jack as Jack told him how he loved his virtuousness, his "funny little innocence" as Jack called it. Ianto would always know that he was lying to Jack; _he _had been unfaithful, he was not the person Jack thought he was, but one thing he knew was that he could never. ever face telling Jack the truth; to see the disappointment and hurt in his eyes. Jack would shrug it off of course; pretend it didn't matter; but those beautiful blue would tell a different story.

Before he had much time to dwell on this a bright light came on; revealing his prison. A bare, stone room with no windows; Ianto could feel a slight claustrophobia setting in. He squinted as his eyes adjusted to the light, searching for its origin. When he finally found it he gasped. A bright light shone from above a small camera. This rested on a large screen on which Jack Harkness stared back at him with a horrified face. Before he had much time to process this, as quickly as it had come, it disappeared, and Ianto was plunged once again into a lonely darkness.


	8. A New Perspective

"You let him go right now!" Jack had never known such anger inside him. The quick glimpse he had had of Ianto had been enough to set off a surge of emotions inside him. Ianto had looked bad; his eyes seemed out of focus, dazed and confused. His hands had been bound, his face pale. There had been a helplessness in his gaze, as if resigned to a terrible fate, and there had been something else; an emotion that Jack couldn't quite place. Jack knew every inch of that man's body, every expression he'd ever made, but he did not know this one - that panicked Jack.

He looked at the two men now on the screen once again; daggers in his glare.

"We thought that might alter your perspective,"

Jack merely growled in return, his pulse racing, his face reddening in pure hatred.

"You should have taken better care of him Jack Harkness, it was just too easy. Your tea boy simply walked right into our trap."

Jack could feel his blood rushing to his face, hist fists clench as he desperately resisted punching the screen, the hope of another glimpse of Ianto holding him back.

"You have two days," The elder told him, betraying no emotion; "two days for you to give us an answer - or your little lover dies."

The monitor went blank, leaving a fuming Jack staring at it. In pure anger he thrashed out at it; knocking over, hearing it crash to the ground as he walked away was strangely satisfying. He was angry at himself for having let this happen. It all made sense now, why they'd been so interested in their personal files. They weren't interested in their information on the rift; they'd been looking for something they could use against him - and boy had they found it!

Jack closed his eyes as he pressed the emergency call out button to alert Gwen. They had Ianto, his Ianto. His beautiful, organised, composed, but most of all, loving, Ianto. He should never have let him leave alone; niether him or Gwen since he'd found the agents rooting around their files. He felt a hatred boil up inside him - how dare they take his Ianto, but even worse - he'd let them!

Ianto couldn't help but sob quietly. Seeing Jack even for that brief moment had submerged him in guilt. He was not delirious enough not to realise what must be happening. They had taken him for a reason - he must be the bargaining chip, used to persuade Jack to comply with whatever these strangers had planned. Somewhere right now Jack would be having to choose, choose between whatever these men wanted him to do and Ianto's life. Ianto knew it must be something awful if Jack had not already got him out of here. The guilt ate at Ianto; he did not feel he deserved consideration; he wanted to call out, scream to Jack to forget about him and deny these people what they wanted, whatever it was he was not worth it, especially not now. But he was helpless, trapped by the darkness all he could do was sit and wait.

Gwen struggled to process what Jack was saying, she heard the words but they barely registered. She could see he was doing his best to remain objective, composed; but he could not hide the internal battle within. He wouldn't let Ianto die, she knew he wouldn't, at least she thought she knew. "Search everywhere" he was saying, "I want his movements from last night, down to the last second; people aren't just taken. These people may be spies; but kidnap isn't their usual tactic; they're getting desperate, everyone leaves a trail - find it!"

Gwen simply nodded, at this confirmation that what he'd said had been registered Jack instantly turned away to pursue his own search.

"Jack" Gwen called after him meekly. He turned. "he'll be ok, Ianto; he'll be alright - won't he?"

Jack gave no answer but simply turned back to what he had been doing leaving Gwen's blood running cold.

"There's no footage from the bay," Gwen called to Jack as they trawled through the CCTV, their primary focus trying to get some clue of Ianto's whereabouts. "Try his route home," Jack replied, "see if he made it back or not." Obediently, Gwen switched her search. Jack turned to some of Ianto's favorite haunts, his eyes glancing briefly at Ianto's picture from new year before resting back on the screen"we will find you Ianto," he muttered to thin air, "I promise."

Gwen glanced over at her boss. He hadn't moved from Ianto's desk in hours. In moments she'd caught him gazing at the picture frame that took prime position by Ianto's computer.  
He felt guilty, she knew, he felt responsible for the whole situation. Jack blamed himself more than anyone for Ianto's kidnap; he felt should have been there, should have stopped it. She was worried about him, she'd never seen him like this before, even when things were grave there was usually something in his manner that seemed to reassure her. But a he sat there pitifully staring at the photo, shoulders heavy, expression serious, she felt no such reassurance. Looking back at the screen before her she continued to trawl through the CCTV, with every minute that past, a little hope ebbing away from her.

Jack's heart jumped as he recognized the figure on the screen, he set the program to clean up the footage to be certain, it was Ianto all right. He stood alone, looking around and checking his watch as if waiting for someone. Jack narrowed his eyes; what was he doing? The next moment a second person joined him - Luna. Jack hastily configured the machine in front of him to search for the path that they took as they walked out of view ofthe camera, within moments the computer had it. Jack watched curiously as the pair wondered around Cardiff, stopping at various points of interest along the way; Jack almost smirked - Ianto seemed to be giving her a history tour - typical.

Jack skipped through the footage to the final camera, he cleaned the footage and then zoomed in, praising the marvels of technology; Ianto's beautiful face could be seen clear as day. Heart pounding he clicked play, he never anticipated the scene he now saw unfold before him. Jack watched as Luna placed a comforting arm around Ianto, bringing her face close to his. He saw Ianto pull away a little, but not too far. Jack felt something inside him tear as he watched Ianto return Luna's kiss. As he watched what succeeded this Jack focused on the expression on Ianto's face; he was far from resisting, quite the opposite in fact. There was a lust there such as Jack had only ever seen on Ianto's face in their most private moments, this pleasure he was finding in her after much less intimacy. Jack averted his eyes as he saw Luna caressing Ianto's crotch and reaching for his zipper, pausing the clip.

Jack had suspected Ianto had held a slight flame for Luna but had never for an instant thought he may hold such strong feelings for her, never once doubted his faithfulness. His thoughts wondered to the moment in the vaults the day before. Ianto had been tense, had resisted him with little affection. Jack had put it down to the suddenness of his advance, now thinking back though Ianto had always melted in his touch, never complained. It made sense now, things had changed.

Jack was suddenly conscious of Gwen's eyes, watching him with concern. "What is it?" she asked, her voice betraying her worry. Jack shook his head, "I..." but he could not say it, "I can't watch this," he finally managed to croak, "can you finish it for me?"

"of course," Gwen frowned, but chose not to question, "If you want me to of course."

Jack nodded, wearily he got up and slunk away into his office, shutting himself in with his bottle of whiskey.

"Jack?" Gwen knocked on his door, clear now why her boss was acting so strange, "Jack you have to see this it's important." Gwen opened the door to reveal a puffy-eyed Jack, slumped in his chair, staring at a full bottle of whiskey, unable, it seemed, to bring himself to touch it. He barely registered her entrance. Taking advantage of this she slipped behind his desk and brought up the CCTV on the screen before he could stop her, Jack's reaction was immediate. "No!" he grabbed her arm.

"wait," she shrugged him off, "there's something you need to see." Jack groaned as she played the clip.

"Stop it Gwen, I don't want to see.."

"Wait Gwen silenced him, just watch for a moment longer."

Jack unwillingly complied, obviously realizing he wasn't going to get rid of her any other way. He watched again as Luna reached for Ianto's belt but this time he kept his eyes on the screen. He watched as Luna put her hand beneath Ianto's boxers and then Jack saw something that made him sit forward in his chair and stare closely at the screen.

"Play that last bit again." he ordered Gwen who willingly did so, relieved her boss had returned to his more business-like tone. Jack's eyes carefully studied Ianto's face. At the very moment Luna's hand disappeared beneath his boxers Ianto stiffened, and the glaze that Jack had not noticed previously disappeared from his eyes. Relief washed over Jack as a weight was lifted. How could he have ever doubted Ianto; good, faithful Ianto. Everything seemed clearer now, his thoughts became ordered , flowing freely once more like a pipe that had just been unblocked; Ianto had been drugged. It must have been a powerful drug, to have given such a strong reaction, but as Jack now saw, it hadn't been strong enough. They'd underestimated the strength of Ianto's feelings for Jack, his... Jack closed his eyes as they began to tear before allowing the thought to continue... _Ianto's love. _Jack wanted to scream, to cry out to Ianto, to tell him what he knew the Welshman so desperately yearned to hear, but Jack had never had the strength to tell him, he hadn't even quite realized the reality of it himself. But now, seeing Ianto taken advantage of, seeing him in danger, distraught and alone, well, it made him see things from a new perspective.

Jack's eyes snapped open and he jumped up so abruptly he nearly knocked Gwen over. " Get them back on the monitor, I have to speak to Ianto" he told her. She nodded and went to leave but as she turned away he grasped her wrist tightly, making her pause and look back into his eyes; they were filled with defiance. "I can't lose him," he told her, "not this time, I won't let him die."

She offered him a comforting smile in return, trying in that one look to show him how much she too cared, "We'd better get crackin' then."


End file.
